Perfect Pitch?

[colonel66]

People classified with perfect pitch may not actually be as in tune with the sounds they hear as they think, a study finds.

Read more:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22871651

 

[carolkoh]

Yes. That.

Besides how is perfect pitch defined? Concert A now is 440Hz. With some European orchestras going as high as 443Hz

In 1711, the "tuning fork" was invented by John Shore, English musician to the royal court, and had a pitch of A423.5

So... who's pitch perfect? Would the European musician used to 443 find our American orchestras gratingly flat? Nope. It is NOT a fixed ability.

I am considered to have "Perfect Pitch" but I've always known that I can get easily led away or fooled in the manner the article describes.

 

[egidius]

Where to start..? It is a nuisance and fantastic (No I don't have it, but I know lots of people who live and work with it)

Best go here, loads of "beginners" questions ;-)

https://www.quora.com/search?q=perfect+pitch

As it is, with age, your perfect pitch tends to change, extremely unrattling, and the above post does not really take into account the difference between pitch and intonation - the guy might have very well noticed, how it turned sour, well trained ears have this ability, but then you all know the terrible choirs going downhill thinking they are completely in tune. or great soloist singers who cannot hear there intonation because of the head pressure, thats basically training, otherwise THEY tend to rise..

and so on. Intonation is a miracle.

 

[jazdoc]

My oldest son has absolute perfect pitch. Great for a musician...he can almost instantly transpose music into different keys, i.e. baritone and tenor saxophones (which freaks out his music teacher). Useful for me as an audiophile...he is my perfect pitch adjuster for the turntable. Off center spindle holes drive him crazy...

 

[colonel66]

My take away from the article is how malleable our brain and hearing perception is.

Firstly i don't have perfect pitch (probably not even close) but it just goes to show how easily our perceptions can change and the implications of this in auditioning gear.

This may also explain my one's system can sound different on some days